Fourteen-year-old Terry Bowen travels from the U.S. to India to meet his father Hugh Bowen for the first time. After a dispute with his father, Terry runs away and is befriended by Raji. Together, Terry and Raji have many adventures in the jungles of India. The cultural and religious differences between Terry, an American Christian, and Raji, an Indian Hindu, cause conflict. However, the boys overcome their differences and survive to deliver Maya, a sacred white elephant, and her calf to a far away temple.